A seven-year-old girl has walked free from the wreckage of a private plane that crashed in a wooded area of Kentucky, killing her parents and two others on board, US police say.
Police were alerted to the crash when they received an emergency call from a local resident, they said in a statement on Facebook.
Larry Wilkins lives nestled in the woods in Kuttawa in the US state of Kentucky. The girl reportedly walked approximately three quarters of a mile through the woods to his house.
The 71-year-old said he was watching television at about 6.30pm, when he heard a knock.
"She was bleeding pretty bad, her legs were bleeding, her face had a bloody nose. She was barefoot, only had one sock on," Mr Wilkins told NBC News by telephone on Saturday.
"She told me that her mom and her dad were dead, and she was in a plane crash, and the plane was upside down," he added.
He said he got a washcloth to clean her wounds and immediately called emergency services.
The girl was distressed and taken to a hospital for treatment for non-life-threatening injuries, State Police Sergeant Dean Patterson said in a statement.
Emergency crews raced to the area and later located the small plane.
“Once we found the wreckage, we were literally amazed that this young lady not only survived the crash, but was able to get from the crash location to this house. She was in shorts having returned from Florida, she walked through briers and thorns. There's one creek bed that was probably 12 foot deep that she walked through,” said Lt Brent White of the Kentucky State Police.
"Investigators on scene confirm four fatalities at the crash site. The fatalities account for the pilot and remaining passengers," a subsequent police statement on Facebook said.
Kathleen Bergen of the Federal Aviation Administration said air traffic controllers lost contact with a Piper PA-34 as it was flying over Marshall County in the south western part of the state.
The pilot had reported engine problems.
The girl has been named as Sailor Gutzler. The four victims were reportedly her parents, sister and cousin.
In a statement the family of the girl requested privacy:
The Gutzler family mourns the loss of Marty, Kim and Piper Gutzler and Sierra Wilder,” stated Kent Plotner. “We are devastated by this loss but are confident that they rest in God’s loving arms. We ask that you respect our privacy at this difficult time. Please pray for us, especially for Sailor Gutzler.”
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